Ruby stares at the moon through a window, sitting on the staircase. Snow was drizzling outside. Ruby checks on the rest of us, Blake, Yang and Weiss are sitting on the rug and staring at the fire from the fireplace. Maria Calavera reads a book while sitting on the sofa and Oscar Pine is pacing back and forth. I was leaning against the wall next to the window, watching everyone else as we waited for Qrow to return from the other houses.
Hearing a tap on the window, I used the force to move the dresser, with Qrow stepping in. Once he was in the living room, I moved the dresser once more to block the door.
"Storm's cleared up for now." He said, looking at me. "Then there is the metal basment doors... evey house has them." He said, were we all felt worried by what he said.
"We should be able to leave by morning." I said, closing my eyes.
"That's a good." Ruby said as she looked at me.
"I don't have a good feeling about this place, especially with me around." Qrow said, with me looking at him.
"Are you... okay?" Ruby asked, where I shook my head as I saw he had a bottle of wine stached behind him.
"Sure." Qrow said as he scuffed at her concern. "Tell everyone to get some sleep. I'll wake you guys up just before sunrise." Qrow said, with me walking over to the carpet and sitting next to Blake, who handed me the second blanket she was using to stay warm.
"Thank goodness, I cant wait for the morning." Blake said as I laid down after covering myself.
"What do you think you're doing?" Weiss asked, with me looking at her, seeing that she, Yang, Maria and Ruby were all looking at me.
"Going to sleep?" I asked, not entirely sure whybthey all had their own glaring contest.
"Nope, we, as in us GIRLS, will sleep by the fire!" Yang said as she pointed at every girl in the room. "You boys will be sleeping on that couch!" She added as she pointed to the couch, which was a bit away from the fire.
"Sure, I get it." I said as I went to stand up, but Blake pulled me back down, even laying her head on my chest.
"He is staying here... I need the warmth." She said, with the others screaming in shock. "I'm too tired to argue, so go to sleep." She added as she closed her eyes, making me sigh and close mine as well.
"Hmph, the last thing we need is for a Jedi to lose his way and for one of us to be with child!" Maria said, scoffing at us.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
My heart raced, beating fast, too fast to my liking. The dark mists lswirling around me mad it even worse. I found himself standing by a waterfall, the acrid smell of blood filled my senses. Down below, I saw a familiar figure, laying on a natural walkway, I saw Blake, blood pouring out of her stomach.
"Blake!" I shouted, but the words were swallowed by the waterfall. He watched in horror as Adam turned to look up at me, a dark smile on his face. Time slowed as the light faded from her eyes, and Kaelan felt an agonizing tremor ripple through the Force. It was a wave of grief and loss that threatened to engulf him, but before he could react, the mist shifted.
I was now standing at a table, a tea party of sorts. He felt a suffocating dread wash over me as I turned to see Ruby. Her warm smile was gone, replaced by an expression filled with despair. She was staring at a cup, with Neo behind her. Ruby downed the tea, before collapsing, it was clear that she had killed herself, no, Neo tortured her to the point of suicide.
"Ruby!" I cried out, but the words fell deaf. I watched helplessly as she took a deep breath before fading, disappearing into the void. The suddenness of her death sent me a shockwave of anguish. His heart broke as I grappled with the overwhelming weight of my friends' deaths, but the vision was not over.
The mist shifted once more, and now I found myself in a vast arena, the atmosphere thick with tension. Before me stood my sister, her lightsaber ignited and a fierce determination in her eyes. I could sense her anger, her pain, and yet there was a glimmer of something deeper—a tumultuous love entwined with the inevitabilities of her destinies.
"Rike!" I called out, my voice trembling with desperation.
Her response was a swift swing of her lightsaber, forcing the other me to react instinctively. They clashed in a whirlwind of skill and emotion, each strike echoing their shared past, the fractures growing deeper with every passing moment. As they fought, I could feel the heat of their conflict, a maelstrom of light and dark swirling around them.
But I sensed something ominous in the air, a darkness that pressed against the other me as he struggled to hold back. Unable to contain the rising tide of desperation, he struck back with a force he had never intended. In a moment suspended in time, he saw the flicker of surprise in Rika's eyes, followed by a flash of pain as his blade pierced through her defenses.
I gasped, the heart-wrenching realization hitting me like a physical blow. The other me dropped his lightsaber, the clatter echoing around them as he knelt beside her cooling body, tears streaming down his face. The weight of the galaxy settled heavily on his shoulders.
I jolted awake as something clatters on the floor, causing Ruby to wake with a start as well. My sudden sit up pushed Blake off of me, where she was now laying on Yang. I looked around, seeing thag Weiss was on the other side of Yanf, and Ruby was sitting up on the other side of her. She looked around before rubbing her eyes l, looking at me and tilting her head to the side. I grabbed my chest and looked away, just now realizing that I was breathing heavily.
"Are you okay?" She asked, with me nodding.
"Y-yeah... j-just a nightmare." I said, where she stood up and walked over to the window and opens the curtains, letting the light in.
Hearing a moan, I looked ofer at Weiss. "Close the window!" Weiss muttered in her sleep.
"What was that?" I muttered to myself as I looked down at Blake, seeing her cling to Yang. 'Was... it a dream? No... it felt real.' I thought as I closed my eyes.
'Your thoughts betray you.' I heard, making me flinch as it wasn't my voice, but some older guys voice. I had never heard this voice before, bit whoever it was, gave me a warning.
"Uncle Qrow. Come on, get up." I heard Ruby, with me finding my breathing rhythm. Standing up, I felt tired, too tired that I nearly fell over again. "We overslept." Ruby said as I got up. Walking over to the window, I saw that the storm was done.
Hearing something shatter, I looked over at them, reaching for my saber, but stopped once I saw that Ruby just threw a bottle at the wall. I shook my head, then felt my stomach rumble. I went to the food that we had stored up, but stopped once I saw what we had left.
'I'm too tired to eat.' I thought as I sat down on the couch. Shaking my head, I leaned back against the couch. Closing my eyes, I planned on going back to sleep. Thats all I felt like doing, was sleeping. I was too tired.
'Your thoughts betray you.' The voice spoke again, with me grabbing my head as it was louder this time. 'Clear your mind, focus, let the force clear what is not truly there.' The voice spoke, with me sitting up.
'Your thoughts betray you?' I thought to myself, trying to figure out what it means. Getting up, I made my way to the door and moved the dresser, with Ruby walking up to me.
"Are you... okay?" Ruby asked again, with me looking back at her.
"Your thoughts betray you." I said, opening the door and stepping outside. Seeing a well, I walked over to it. Sitting down in the snow, I closed my eyes as I placed my hands onto my knees. "My thoughts betray me." I said as I focused onto my mind.
Opening my eyes, I found a blank space with water under my feet. I was standing, and the water was ripping. This was odd as it wasn't ripping from me, but further on. Walking forward, I followed where the ripples came from. After some time, I saw a drop of water hit the water from above. Looking up, I saw a grotesque like creature looking down at me.
My eyes snapped open, with me finding that Yang's bike was now in front of me with the flatbed trailer behind Bumblebee. "Your back, now!" Maria yelled as me as she ran over to me. "Let me on your back!" She ordered, with me grabbing her and placing her on my back.
"What happened?" I asked, with her pointing to the well.
"Go, they need you!" She yelled, with me jumping without hesitation. Igniting my lightsaber, I could hear Ruby scream, where I took off in her direction.
As I ran, I heard an ear-piercing scream, causing with me grabbing my head. Turning mybsaber off, I felt heavy. "Your thoughts betray you." I said as I held my hands out, using the force to push back against an unseen force.
"Run!" Maria called out, with me looking up and seeing Team RWBY just up ahead. "Now!" Maria said as I turned around and ran, with them following, even passing me up as I saw slower at the moment.
"Go, go!" Ruby yelled at me as she passed me up.
Seeing light from the well, we came to a stop as more of the Grimm appear and blocked our path. Another ear-piercing scream was heard, affecting is again, but just like before, I pushed back against it.
"This way!" Ruby said, with us looking at her and following her into the tunnel she pointed out. We continued to run through the complex underground passages while avoiding more of the Grimm's kind along the way. We then made our way to an underground room. However, we noticed a much larger group of the Grimm at one end of the room. We made a run toward the other way, but one of the Grimm lets out another scream, causing us to collapse, where I dropped Maria as I panted, having a hard time breathing.
"I can't... do this... I can't..." Yang said as she crawled on the ground ahead of me.
Maria then gets back up, using her cane to support herself before collapsing again. On her fall, she feels a set of stairs in front of her. "An exit. An exit!" She called out, with me looking at Blake as she was behind me.
Crawling over to her, I now hovered over her. Grabbing my lightsaber, I pointed it at the Grimm. Once it was in range, I turned it on, stabbing and killing it before dropping my weapon and landing on Blake.
"Come on!" Ruby said, with me laying down next to Blake as I could no longer hold myself up. "Blake... Dakota... get... up!" She ordered as all I could do was look into her eyes.
"It's fine..." Blake said as she kept her eyes on me.
"BLAAAAAKE!!!" Runy yelled, where the room became white, burning the Grimm and forcing them back. Blake and I gasped for air as we snapped out of our trance. Standing up, I pulled Blake to her feet and passed her to Ruby as I ignited my lightsaber once more and cut some fo them down as Ruby helps Blake up while Weiss, Yang and Maria also get back up.
"I've got her!" Ruby said as I pushed them back.
"What just happened?" Maria asked as not even I knew, but right now I didn't care.
Weiss runs up the stairs and tries to get the doors open, but they don't budge. "They're locked!" Weiss yelled back at us.
"Out of my way!" Yang yelled as she runs up the stairs.
The Grimm recover from their incapacitation, and another scream is let out, where we collapse once more.
"No... No...!" I yelled as I shot up and cut one down before falling again, where I felt something on my leg, and pulled me away from them. I had Blakes ribbon on my leg, she must of put it on just as I fell.
"Ruby... what color are your eyes?" Maria asked, with me looking at her.
"They're... silver..." Runy answerd, and jt was odd to have such an eye color.
Maria lets out a gasp of excitement. "You have a family? Friends?" Maria asked, gaining my attention as I turned to look at her.
"What?" Ruby asked, with me looking over at the others, seeing that theybhad stopped entirely.
"Don't think about them. Think about the people who love you. Focus on the thought of them, the way they make you feel. Focus!" Maria said, making me wonder what she was talking about... Was Ruby... a force user as well?
Taking Maria's advice, Ruby closes her eyes and concentrates. Looking at the stairs, Weiss tries to budge the doors open, and Yang reaches out in desperation before falling under a trance.
"Your thoughts... betray you." I said as I used the force to push back against the Grimm's unseen attack, standing up and blocking their path from Ruby. Whatever Maria was doing, she needed time, and I was her shield.
"Life... is beautiful. It is precious. And it must... be protected." Maria added, and after focusing, Ruby opens her eyes, a silver gleaming light coming from her direction. Looking back, she sits up and her eyes glow brightly once more, driving the Grimm back and disintegrating them all. We stare in awe while Weiss, Blake and Yang recover. Yang crawls up the stairs and punches the doors open with her prosthetic arm while firing from its gun. We run out and find ourselves in the basement that we discovered the day before.
"We're back in the house?" Blake asked, shocked to be back here. We then look at the bar and see Qrow leaning on the counter, passed out.
"Uncle Qrow, get up!" Ruby yelled as she shook her uncle awake.
"Hey! Get off me! What are you doing here?" Qrow asked as he pushed her away, with me looking back at the basement doors.
"We're leaving, you idiot! Come on!" Maria said as I picked her up and placed her on my back.
"Weiss, torch the place!" I ordered as we ran out of the room, with Blake and Yang following us. Weiss looks back towards the basement entrance.
"With pleasure." I heard Weiss say as we ran up the stairs and out of the house, where we saw Oscar had replaced the tire for the trailer and was filling it up with air.
"Oscar! Oscar!" Yang yelled as we ran out and over to him, but he couldn't hear us.
"Oscar!" Maria yelled as I reached him, picked him up and placed him on the flatbed.
"Oscar! We have to go, now!" Yang yelled as she jumped onto her bike, where I set Maria down: looking back at the house, I watched as Ruby and Weiss had to drag Qrow out, with me holding my hands out. Pulling them down, the house collapsed on itself, with us getting on and Yang driving out of there like a bat out of hell.
Later
Yang continues driving Bumblebee down the snowy road with everyone sitting in the trailer being pulled behind her. "The Apathy." Maria informed us the name, with us looking at her. "They're not strong or ferocious. They drain your will to go on. Bartleby's estate was hemorrhaging money towards the end. He wanted to cut costs on Huntsman protection, but in order to do that, he needed everyone calm... always." She said, with me knowing how everyone died there.
"Managed to get two away from their pack." Oscar said as he read from the book. "Hike back was miserable, but got the bastards in the cellar. Wife thinks I was out sealing the waterway entrance. I'll do it tomorrow and tell her the truth once these things take the edge off of everyone. I'm tired." He said, as that sounded familiar.
"The next page proves that he did, but not before the rest of the pack followed their missing pair all the way home. My guess is they made their way beneath the estate through the water tunnels that Bartleby sealed up the next morning. Bartleby's plan worked." Maria said as she took the book from Oscar. "No one was angry or sad or scared. No one was anything. And then... no one was left." She said as she takes one more look at the final page of the diary, the last words written down being "I'm tired". She then closes the book and tosses it out into the snow, the cover having "VIII" on it, while the group continues to drive down the road.
"I'm... sorry for what I said... about giving up." Weiss said, with me laying down as I was still tired.
Upon hearing this, Yang stops driving. "Me too. We can't quit until the lamp is safe." Yang said, confusing me on what they were talking about... then again, it probably is what led them down the well.
"It's not your fault. It was those... things." Blake said, brushing my hair with her hands.
"Your thoughts betray you." Ruby said, with me looking at her, seeing that she was looking at me. "You said that earlier... you felt something was going on, didn't you?" She asked, with me looking up at the sky.
"No, it's more like I was warned. I didn't know what to do until I heard them scream." I said as I placed my arm over my eyes. "I heard a voice... and his words were "Your thoughts betray you", and so I figured that I would meditate to find what was wrong. Imagine my surprise when I find out you four went into the well." I said, where Blake moved my arm away.
"You okay?" She asked, with me nodding.
"Yeah... fighting off an attack to the mind took a lot out on me, especially so many minds. I'm just tired, physically, not mentally... okay, both." I said, smiling as to not worry them.
"I should have known." Maria said, with us looking at her. "The signs were all there, but I'd never seen an entire settlement withered away like that. I suppose my mind just isn't what it used to be." She said, with me sitting up.
"Miss Calavera? How do you know so much about the Grimm? And in the tunnels, you knew exactly what to say to make me... to make my eyes do that. How?" Ruby asked before I could as that was the most important thing at the moment.
"Well, isn't it obvious, girl? I had Silver Eyes." She said, shocking us.